STAMFORD -- With 477 graduates in Westhill High School's Class of 2013 gathered on the 50-yard line of the school's football stadium, Thursday's graduation was a big event -- the kind that commanded extra chairs be brought to the turf a few minutes into the ceremony. But the members of the class made it perfectly clear that while they were numerous, they were really a close-knit group, linked by a tight bond that would be expected of a small group of people.

"These classmates have made a lasting impact on your life, as you have on theirs," class president Christiana Provenzano told her classmates during the ceremony. While graduating and moving away may change those friendships, Provenzano said in the long run, they will only be made stronger.

"We have been able to turn to each other for support during some difficult times," Provenzano said. "And we have also cheered and applauded each other during some amazing times."

The class took some time to applaud their friends during the ceremony, as past-president Shabaz Khan asked several members of his grade to stand and be applauded for their efforts in organizing fundraisers, talent shows and everything in between.

But as they applauded actions and friendships built in the past, many of the adults present for the occasion reminded them that June 20, 2013, is less about the 13 years they've spent getting ready to don their purple robes and more about marking a milestone on their lifelong journey to change the world.

"I know you are prepared and ready to move on. Each of you has received the education, motivation and support here to do your best," Board of Education President Geoff Alswanger told the students. Alswanger, who is a Westhill parent himself, noted that while some of the students may have had bumpy paths or uphill slopes to graduation and others walked a straight line through high school, it is most important to focus on how they will navigate their future paths.

And those paths may lead to many things, said Superintendent of Schools Winifred Hamilton.

"Looking at you, I see future financiers, fiction writers, engineers, educators, athletes, astrophysicists, performers and paralegals," the superintendent said, as she urged the graduates to find their bliss and "pursue it passionately."

"Don't think about what you want from life," she said. "Think about what life wants from you. Pay attention to what gets you up in the morning -- what delights and excited you. Pursue internal instead of external rewards. Money, prestige and power often go away, but richness of spirit and taking the high road are lasting."

It was a sentiment echoed by keynote speaker Josh Robin, an anchor on New York City's 24-hour news channel NY1, and a 1994 graduate of Westhill. As Robin prepared to deliver an address at his alma mater, he contacted the senior class's faculty adviser, Kate Tobin to learn more about the students, he said.

"Here's what she said: Impressive group of kids. They take care of each other," he informed the students and their families. They also take care of their world, he noted, pointing to a recent statewide award for the school's recycling effort. So Robin called on the 477 students to take on a large task: Save the world.

In a world of climate change, which the class of 2013 experienced in the form of snow days due to everything from hurricanes to blizzards and Superstorms. Robin said the young adults can take their passion for caring for the planet on with them in the next chapters of their lives and be "the agents of change" for a planet that desperately needs more attention paid to its health.

"You have the will and the intelligence to be the visionaries and leaders that we need," he said. "We really have no choice in the matter, not unless we want to give future generations a worse world than we inherited."

Robin concluded by issuing the graduates a call to action.

"Go to college. Get your first degree. Get your first full-time job. Start a family. Save the world -- no pressure," he said.

It's a tall order, but Westhill Principal Camille Figluizzi showed her support and encouragement.

"We consider you our best work," she told the graduates, among whom her daughter sat. "And we thank you for all the times you have made us Westhill and proud."